Notice of Non-Discrimination, Equal Opportunity, and Title IX Compliance

To: The Rensselaer Community
From: Martin A. Schmidt ’81, Ph.D., President; Louis Padula, Vice President for Human Resources
Re: Notice of Non-Discrimination, Equal Opportunity, and Title IX Compliance

We are writing to you today regarding Rensselaer’s commitment to non-discrimination, equal opportunity, and Title IX compliance. This notice contains the following:

  • Our statement of commitment to maintaining a work environment free from harassment, discrimination, and sexual misconduct and to providing equal employment and educational opportunities for all.
  • Information about RPI’s new Sexual Misconduct and Title IX Policy and accessing supportive resources.
  • An announcement of new annual training for all employees regarding their obligations in responding to and reporting incidents of discrimination, discriminatory harassment, and sexual misconduct.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is committed to maintaining a safe and healthy living, learning, and working environment free from harassment, unlawful discrimination, and inappropriate behavior and conduct. We are committed to ensuring the dignity and respect of all faculty, staff, and students and a community in which no member is, on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, religion, sex, gender, pregnancy or related condition, sexual orientation, transgender status, gender dysphoria, gender identity, gender expression, sex stereotype, age, marital status, national origin, citizenship status, disability, military status, veteran status, genetic information, genetic predisposition, domestic violence victim status, familial status, relationship with or association with member(s) of a protected class, legal off-premises use of tobacco products, or any other basis prohibited by law, excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or subjected to discrimination in any Institute program or activity.

Discrimination, discriminatory harassment, and sexual misconduct, including but not limited to hostile environment or quid pro quo sex-based harassment, sexual violence, sexual exploitation, dating and domestic violence, and stalking, are forms of illegal discrimination in that they deny or limit an individual's ability to participate in or benefit as a student, faculty member, staff member, or administrator from the Institute's programs or activities.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is also committed to providing equal employment and educational opportunities for all campus community members. Our commitment to non-discrimination and equal opportunity extends to all aspects of the employment and academic relationship including, but not limited to, the recruitment and admission of students, the recruitment and employment of leaders, faculty, and staff, and the operation of any programs and activities of Rensselaer as specified by Institute policy, and federal and state law and regulations.

In furtherance of these commitments, and in compliance with new regulations from the U.S. Department of Education, Rensselaer published a new Sexual Misconduct and Title IX Policy this fall. That policy, as well as information about supportive resources and accommodations and options for reporting sex discrimination, sex-based harassment, and sexual misconduct can be obtained at https://sexualviolence.rpi.edu/.

Additional information regarding Rensselaer’s commitment to non-discrimination can be found on the Bias Assessment and Response website, as well as in the Human Resources Policy Guidelines.

Faculty, staff, and students who wish to report incidents of discrimination, discriminatory harassment, or sexual misconduct can file complaints, including anonymous complaints, on the website above. Faculty, staff, and students can also obtain information or file reports by contacting one of the Institute's Title IX coordinators listed below, or by submitting a report to the Department of Public Safety (DPS):

Title IX Coordinators:
The Title IX coordinators are located in the Division of Human Resources, Gurley Building 2nd Floor, 21 Union Street, Troy, NY 12180.

Rensselaer Department of Public Safety:
The Department of Public Safety is located at 15th Street, Troy, NY 12180 and can be reached at (518) 276-6611. DPS is available 24 hours per day, seven days per week.

Rensselaer values and respects the diversity of its leaders, faculty, staff, and students. As a community of learning and research, our success is based on all its members' trust, respect, and dignity. The Institute expects high standards of personal behavior and responsibility from its leaders, faculty, staff, and students. With these values as its foundation, and in recognition of the dignity and worth of all campus community members, incidents of such behavior will not be tolerated, and retaliation for reporting such behavior is prohibited.

Every member of the Rensselaer community (including leaders, faculty, staff, students, or third parties) is responsible for ensuring that incidents of discrimination, discriminatory harassment, and sexual misconduct do not occur, and should they occur, assumes the responsibility for reporting them. Information about our new annual training for all faculty and staff regarding their obligations under this policy can be found in Percipio. This training is an essential component of Rensselaer’s efforts to provide the safe and healthy living, learning, and working environment our community deserves.

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